Simon Theatre - Brenham Downtown Historic District - Brenham, TX - NRHP Historic Districts - Contributing Buildings on Waymarking.com

Built in 1925, the 2-story Beaux Arts Classical Revival style Simon Theatre is listed as a Contributing Building ("CBD #82 / Property #56") in the original Brenham Downtown Historic District NRHP nomination form -- see: downloadable PDF document from the Texas Historical Commission's Atlas website, Page 10 of 84.

It was recently renamed the Barnhill Center: its first floor lobby is the home of the Washington County Visitor Center, while the remaining areas are a multi-purpose meeting and event establishment.

Per the original Brenham Downtown Historic District NRHP nomination form (see previous PDF link, pages 30 and 31):

The Simon Theater was designed by noted Houston architect Alfred C. Finn, with R. P. Ball, also of Houston, acting as contractor. Alex and James Simon, prominent businessmen in Brenham, commissioned the Simon Theater, which opened
on November 25, 1925. The theater was constructed on the site of the ca.l 860 Crumpler/Pennington Hotel, which bumed in 1905. When the Simon Theater was constructed, it was surrounded by residential properties to the north, an auto repair shop and Wangemann-Reichardt Wholesale Grocers to the west, and a fumiture store to the south.

The Simon Theater is a two-story, two-part commercial building clad in multi-colored brick (this brick is distinct from most brick in Brenham, and was probably imported rather than made locally). The fa9ade is divided into five bays, delineated by pilasters that stretch from the ground level to the comice and are capped with composite capitals. The central bay is flanked by double pilasters, while the remaining four bays are marked by a single pilaster ornately decorated with brick pilasters. A ribbon of three windows appears between each bay (each window separated by a small brick pilaster). The building features a corbelled brick comice and a protruding parapet top with Grecian urn finials. The ground floor originally housed two storefronts and the theater entrance; although this configuration has been altered, the location of the theater entrance has been retained. Alterations to materials on the ground floor include the replacement of original doors and windows, painting of multi-colored brick, and the addition of mosaic tiles around the entryway. This tile matches the mosaic present at Faske Jewelry. The building features a full-fa9ade wrap around pressed metal awning supported on poles in brick footings. This awning is not original but was added during the period of significance. The protruding marquee has been altered slightly, but otherwise retains its original configuration and location. Most alterations appear to have been made during the period of significance, and a photograph dated 1954 shows the Simon essentially as it appears today. The theater was located in the south end of the building and was outfitted with leather-upholstered opera chairs, which provided seating for 558 in the auditorium and 235 in the gallery. The main entrance to the theater was on Main Street (under the marquee). A separate "colored" entrance was accessed on the east side of the building (facing Park Street) and featured its own ticket booth and secluded access to the gallery seating. These features are still intact. The Simon also featured a large ballroom on the north side of the second floor. The building was originally equipped with modem heating and cooling plants.

The Simon Theater was named for Alex and James Simon. The Simons were among the first Jewish settlers in Brenham,
arriving in 1866. Alex Simon was among the founders of the B'nai Abraham congregation (believed to be the oldest Orthodox synagogue in continuous use in Texas). Alex Simon also owned the Brenham Opera, which was the center of Brenham's social life around the tum-of-the-century. Simon and Son operated a dry goods story on the ground floor of the opera house building. The Simons abandoned the opera business (the Phifer family opened a movie house in the old Opera space), presumably around the time they commissioned Finn to build the theater. The Simon was one of two movie houses in Brenham through the 1950s. Preliminary research suggests that Alex Simon also owned the other movie house,the Rex Theater at 205 E. Main, which is no longer intact.

Name of Historic District (as listed on the NRHP): Brenham Downtown Historic District Link to nationalregisterofhistoricplaces.com page with the Historic District: [Web Link] NRHP Historic District Waymark (Optional): [Web Link] Address: 109 W. Main St. Brenham, TX 77833 How did you determine the building to be a contributing structure?: Narrative found on the internet (Link provided below) Optional link to narrative or database: [Web Link]

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